bigjimslade Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 Last year alot of people were asking about the tickets that Best Buy hands out when you are standing in line on Black Friday. Below is a scan of what the ticket looks like so you know what one looks like. They will have tickets for "Doorbuster" items like TV's, Laptops, Desktops and Mp3 players. About 2 hours before the store opens they will start at the front of the line and offer each person a chance to get a ticket. If someone does not want the item they will go down the line until they run out of tickets or get to the end of the line. Once you have a ticket you can buy that item. Once they open the doors you will have to stand in line for each ticketed item. For example if you have a laptop, desktop and TV tickets you will have to stand in line for each item. Also each store will have a limited number of each doorbuster item. Below is for the eMachine desktop. Last year the store I was at only had 50 on hand so they only had 50 tickets to pass out. On the black friday ad they will have in small print the minimum that each store will have and that is reason for the tickets. I hope this helps. http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m207/davedfw/bbticketbf2005.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossMAN Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 Thank you for posting this and the GottaDeal.com watermark is a nice touch :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mesarobins Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 I wondered about those, thanks for posting. Do any other stores besides Best Buy do something similar? Seems like a good idea (and a time saver for those at the back of the line, if you are only there for one thing and you don't get a ticket you can move on to somewhere else). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 1, 2006 Author Share Posted October 1, 2006 I wondered about those, thanks for posting. Do any other stores besides Best Buy do something similar? Seems like a good idea (and a time saver for those at the back of the line, if you are only there for one thing and you don't get a ticket you can move on to somewhere else).I dont know if any other stores have tickets or a system like it. For the past few years I have only shopped at Best Buy for doorbuster items. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssf Posted October 2, 2006 Share Posted October 2, 2006 Thanks for posting this, I was wondering about the tickets myself..:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmatter Posted October 2, 2006 Share Posted October 2, 2006 I was at BB on BF last year, and those tickets were given out. However, BB did a very poor job of crowd control. People at the front of the line who waited from 8 p.m. Thanksgiving night barely got the tickets they were waiting for. The crowd that was at the back of the line all rushed up behind the clerks who had the tickets and tried to get the forms before the people who waited most of the night got theirs!!! Luckily I jumped in right where I should have been for the $149 computer, and then proceeded to tell the BB clerk who was behind me so those folks would not miss getting their computers and other items. I am not being racist or anything, but many of the people jumping up to the front were of indian descent and thought nothing of jamming and shoving right in front of you to get what they wanted. I was just happy that I had a great young lady beside me (20ish black american) and another group of techies behind me (all races, great guys to hang out with) that mad the night very fun and worth the trip. It got so bad they had to pull the crowd to the side of the parking lot, and start handing out tickets. At that point, I was pinned at the front door where they were letting everyone in one at a time. I ended up being the third person in the door, and got out of the store within 15 minutes with my computers and MP3 player. This was my wife's first time out on BF with me and was in awe of it all. But she will do it again jsut to see the sheer craziness of everyone. She got the rush and can't shake it!! BB just needs to get a better way to keep the folks who arrived late in their place so the folks who rode the 20 degree weather out got their chance to get their items. it ended up being a freee for all when it didn't have to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novac Posted October 2, 2006 Share Posted October 2, 2006 Do any other stores besides Best Buy do something similar?Last year at my Circuit City, they went down the line for the big ticket items. They did not have forms, but what looked like simple MS Word documents. Each ticket item was printed on a different color piece of paper. I didn't see these up close because I wasn't buying the large ticket doorbusters, but I saw employees pass by with them multiple times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 2, 2006 Author Share Posted October 2, 2006 I was at BB on BF last year, and those tickets were given out. However, BB did a very poor job of crowd control. People at the front of the line who waited from 8 p.m. Thanksgiving night barely got the tickets they were waiting for. The crowd that was at the back of the line all rushed up behind the clerks who had the tickets and tried to get the forms before the people who waited most of the night got theirs!!! Luckily I jumped in right where I should have been for the $149 computer, and then proceeded to tell the BB clerk who was behind me so those folks would not miss getting their computers and other items. I am not being racist or anything, but many of the people jumping up to the front were of indian descent and thought nothing of jamming and shoving right in front of you to get what they wanted. I was just happy that I had a great young lady beside me (20ish black american) and another group of techies behind me (all races, great guys to hang out with) that mad the night very fun and worth the trip. It got so bad they had to pull the crowd to the side of the parking lot, and start handing out tickets. At that point, I was pinned at the front door where they were letting everyone in one at a time. I ended up being the third person in the door, and got out of the store within 15 minutes with my computers and MP3 player. This was my wife's first time out on BF with me and was in awe of it all. But she will do it again jsut to see the sheer craziness of everyone. She got the rush and can't shake it!! BB just needs to get a better way to keep the folks who arrived late in their place so the folks who rode the 20 degree weather out got their chance to get their items. it ended up being a freee for all when it didn't have to be. Best Buy does do need to do something about the crowd control. We had a drunk women jump the line and try to get tickets. I just picked up the phone and called the police and they came and hauled her off for being drunk. This year I am taking my digital camera and taking a picture of the people in front of me if there is any so if there is any questions about line jumpers then you have proof. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KBsDarling Posted October 2, 2006 Share Posted October 2, 2006 kb toys used to do it but no idea if they still do as we no longer have a kb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cre8kos4u Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 I have not gotten brave enough to tackle BestBuy on BF, but I want to. Ours is CRAZY. I always wondered what the tickets looked like. Thanks for posting one for us.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cactusmom Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 that is a much nicer looking ticket than the ones we get at my best buy. I think ours were color coded for each department but they were just something they printed up themselves at the store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 3, 2006 Author Share Posted October 3, 2006 This ticket came from the Best Buy store in Frisco, Texas. Frisco is north of Dallas. The ticket's paper is a glossy stock. They have colored paper tickets of the same size for the TVs and such. I think the reason this one is fancy is to sell you all of the extras listed on the paper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnamon16201 Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 I wondered about those, thanks for posting. Do any other stores besides Best Buy do something similar? Seems like a good idea (and a time saver for those at the back of the line, if you are only there for one thing and you don't get a ticket you can move on to somewhere else).Our Staples did something like this last year. They had pieces of paper printed out with the name of the item on them (not fancy tickets) and then came through the line handing them out. Unfortunately, it came time to open the store and they hadn't finished handing out the tickets, so everyone just shoved in. Then it was so confusing that you had to be careful as the employees were handing out the wrong tickets. I had to go back twice to get the right one. But at least it allowed you to do other things in the store and be assured that you got your item. The year before, though, was better. They had everything on tables and people just filed past the tables in a single line and you picked up what you wanted. When the tables were empty, they were gone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebirth Posted October 12, 2006 Share Posted October 12, 2006 The ticket meant nothing to the BB I went to. My friend got it for the camera by the time he went there. The camera was gone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stiltman Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 We had line jumpers too but everyone stood-up for the ones that were there for 8+ hrs. This year i'm thinking of taking some cut out numbers for the first 50 in line that way the BB folks will know who was first! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laffnatu Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 . This year i'm thinking of taking some cut out numbers for the first 50 in line that way the BB folks will know who was first!That sounds like a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peachysquirt21 Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Best Buy does do need to do something about the crowd control. We had a drunk women jump the line and try to get tickets. I just picked up the phone and called the police and they came and hauled her off for being drunk. This year I am taking my digital camera and taking a picture of the people in front of me if there is any so if there is any questions about line jumpers then you have proof.I can't believe someone whould show up drunk. LOL When the police arrived, Did she fight being hauled away or went quietly? LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockfordmom Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 I was at BB on BF last year, and those tickets were given out. However, BB did a very poor job of crowd control. People at the front of the line who waited from 8 p.m. Thanksgiving night barely got the tickets they were waiting for. The crowd that was at the back of the line all rushed up behind the clerks who had the tickets and tried to get the forms before the people who waited most of the night got theirs!!! Luckily I jumped in right where I should have been for the $149 computer, and then proceeded to tell the BB clerk who was behind me so those folks would not miss getting their computers and other items. I am not being racist or anything, but many of the people jumping up to the front were of indian descent and thought nothing of jamming and shoving right in front of you to get what they wanted. I was just happy that I had a great young lady beside me (20ish black american) and another group of techies behind me (all races, great guys to hang out with) that mad the night very fun and worth the trip. It got so bad they had to pull the crowd to the side of the parking lot, and start handing out tickets. At that point, I was pinned at the front door where they were letting everyone in one at a time. I ended up being the third person in the door, and got out of the store within 15 minutes with my computers and MP3 player. This was my wife's first time out on BF with me and was in awe of it all. But she will do it again jsut to see the sheer craziness of everyone. She got the rush and can't shake it!! BB just needs to get a better way to keep the folks who arrived late in their place so the folks who rode the 20 degree weather out got their chance to get their items. it ended up being a freee for all when it didn't have to be.Had a similar experience at a different store where people stood off to the side of the line right before the store was about to open while they pretended to be just standing there talking on their phones but then rushed the doors as soon as they opened in front of people that had been waiting in line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 14, 2006 Author Share Posted October 14, 2006 I can't believe someone whould show up drunk. LOL When the police arrived, Did she fight being hauled away or went quietly? LOLWhen I called 911 the call taker had me stay on the phone until the police got there. She was getting violent and getting into other people's face. When The first officer got there she calmed down but all of a sudden she changed him and by that time his back up got there so the officers back up unit shot her with a pepper ball gun and the first officer took her down with a tazer. She was arrested and hulled off. I know this year from speaking to some of my friends on the Dallas, Texas Police Dept that BB is hiring some off duty officers to keep the lines in order. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Novac Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 This year i'm thinking of taking some cut out numbers for the first 50 in line that way the BB folks will know who was first!And that's the year you end up being 51st in line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ike200000 Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 Last year my BB came out early about an hour or two early and passed out note cards numbered 1-100. That way when they came out early to pass out the big ticket items people couldn't cut in line. They then also used the numbers to allow only approximately 30 people into the store every 15 minutes. It was so nice to be at the front Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gurnee Al Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 I got to my BB about 15 minutes early last year. There were a few hundred people in front of me. Once they opened it took my about a half hour to get in! Of course, they ticketed items were long gone before I got in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noehlp Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 Last year my BB came out early about an hour or two early and passed out note cards numbered 1-100. That way when they came out early to pass out the big ticket items people couldn't cut in line. They then also used the numbers to allow only approximately 30 people into the store every 15 minutes. It was so nice to be at the front I REALLY like that idea! (the part in bold) This would eliminate the whole 'mad-dash' things. I am sure it makes it easier on the employees as well as the customers, well maybe except for the Non-BFer's that show up 2 minutes before they open. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 16, 2006 Author Share Posted October 16, 2006 I got to my BB about 15 minutes early last year. There were a few hundred people in front of me. Once they opened it took my about a half hour to get in! Of course, they ticketed items were long gone before I got in.That is why you have to get there at 8pm on Thursday night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mp4 Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 I know where il be eating my turkey :) Tickets are a great thing, i couldn't imagine the chaos without them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ertsb Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 One Question. If you get a ticket, adn you tell them you are going to but a laptop, is it guarenteed to you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 24, 2006 Author Share Posted October 24, 2006 One Question. If you get a ticket, adn you tell them you are going to but a laptop, is it guarenteed to you?The way the tickets work is about an hour or so before the store opens BB employs will come out and they will start at the front of the line. One employ will say something like "149 emachine" and he/she will go down the line until he/she runs out of tickets. They will only have the number of tickets of the product they have in the store. So if they have 15 computers they will only pass out 15 tickets. They will do this for every ticketed item they are offering. Once you have a ticket the item is saved for you but you have to claim the item before 11am or 12 noon. The stores set the times when you must pick up by. If you want to see a sample of the ticket go to the first post in this subject and you will see one from last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BabyFu18 Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 So what about items that are not doorbusters but are still big items (laptops, MP3 players, etc). If you want a big item like that, which they put on sale for BF but not a doorbuster, do you just run and try and fight for the item? The reason I'm asking is because in one of the other threads someone mentioned a laptop that is rumored to be on sale on BF, but not a doorbuster. I just wasn't sure how things work with non-doorbuster big items. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 Best buy (and ciruit city) have to have the crowds under control this year I would think. Do BB's have a suggestion box? Maybe we should go talk to the managers next time we're there and give our thoughts. The last two years at my Target, they had carts flipped over and lined up down the side of the building leading all the way to the 1 door that was open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjimslade Posted October 24, 2006 Author Share Posted October 24, 2006 So what about items that are not doorbusters but are still big items (laptops, MP3 players, etc). If you want a big item like that, which they put on sale for BF but not a doorbuster, do you just run and try and fight for the item? The reason I'm asking is because in one of the other threads someone mentioned a laptop that is rumored to be on sale on BF, but not a doorbuster. I just wasn't sure how things work with non-doorbuster big items.BB will have tickets for only items that are limited in number. When the ad hits the net and then the papers you will see that some items are limited. The items that were limited last year was computers and TVs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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